Automatic interlocking coupling.



J. V. ROBINSON. AUTOMATIC INTERLOCKING COUPLING. APPLICATION FILEDOCT-7.1909. RENEWED MAY 16, 1911.

Patented May 2, 1916. 3 SHEETS-SHEET! J. v. ROBINSON.

AUTOMATIC INTERLOCKING COUPLING.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 7. 1909. RENEWED MAY 16,1911.

1 l 8 1 A8 1 Patented May 2, 1916.

3 SHEETSSHEET 3- aw W entree sa 1 oration.

JOSEPH vmcnnrnoninson, or enema, onneou.

AUTOMATIC inrnntocninecourtine.

Application filed October 7, 1909, Serial No. 521,445. Renewed May 16,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH VINCENT Roe- INSON, a citizen of the UnitedStates, re-

siding at Salem, in the county of Marion number of specific details ofconstruction hereinafter fully described and claimed and illustrated in.the accompanying, drawings,

\ in which Figure 1 is a front elevation of one of the coupling heads inthe position which it occupies when carried by a railway car; Fig. 2 isa vertical longitudinal section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is ahorizontal longitudinal section on the broken line 3 3 of Fig. 1; Fig. 4is a rear elevation of one of the coupling heads, parts being insection; Fig. 5 is aside elevation of the bracket connected to the drawbar and showing the upper parts of a support to which one of the headsis connected; Fig. 6 is a plan view of said bracket detached andshowingthe movable extension of said bracket swung about so as to exposethe face plate of the coupling head carried thereby for the purpose ofrepair; Fig. 7 is a transverse vertical sectional detail on the line 77of Fig. 5; Fig. 8 is a detail view of the locking pawl employed inconnection with the adjusting means, and

Fig. 9 is a vertical longitudinal sectional detail on the line 9-9 ofFig. 1.

Throughout the following description and on the several figures of thedrawings similar parts are referred to by like reference characters.

Referring particularly to the first figures of the drawings, the numeral10 indicates a coupling head adapted to cooperate with a similarcoupling head carried by the next car, said coupling heads beingsubstantially alike and adaptedto cooperate with each otherautomatically and simultaneously with the operation of the usualautomatic train couplers. Said coupling heads 10, as is usual in thisclass of inventions, carry pipe sections for the purpose of coupling thesig- Specification of Letters Patent.

raeeneea May a, rare. 1911. Serial no. steam.

nal air, brake air, and steam pipe connections. Each coupling head10'comprises a face plate 11, of any suitable general configuration, butmaintained normally in substantially vertical position. Any suitablemeans may be employed to carry the head as a whole in a substantiallyhorizontalposition in order to maintain the face plate in the positionstated. The form of the face plate indicated is substantially ellipticalso as to provide openings for the three pipe connections in asubstantially vertical line, although it is to be understood that anyother form of face plate and disposition of pipe openings might beresorted to' as mlght be found expedient. Extending forwardly from eachof said face plates 11 are a plurality of guide members 12. Said membersare preferablytwo in number for each head and extend from diagonallyopposite portions of the face plate forwardly at a right angle theretofor a certain distance and thence are curved outwardly so that theextreme distance between the outer points 12 of said members isconsiderably greater than the width of the face plate. These guidemembers are commonly employed in this art for the purpose of causing thecoupling heads carried by twocars that are being coupled to properlyaline with each other, even though one of the heads may be normallycarried out of alinement with the other. The guide members at thoseportions where they are connected with the face plate extendsubstantially half way around the same so that when the two heads. arecoupled the abutting face plates will be practically surrounded by saidmembers.

From the nature of this invention it will be appreciated that since thecoupler is designed to be automatic in its operations it is necessary toinsure that by no possibility the coupler may be disturbed by anylateral force when it is supposed to be coupled. It is customary for thecoupling heads to be spring cushioned so as to insure a proper degree oftension the one against the other for the purpose of insuring tightjoints, and when the cars are passing around curves or when the coupleris subjected to a severe lateral blow from any source there is atendency for one side of the coupler to separate or buckle, tending tocause a leakage,. in devices of this character heretofore proposed.

- respect to the .other, and so far as I am One of theobjects'of thisinvention'is to provide the coupling heads of such peculiar form andconstruction as tomake it an impossibility for any-such separation totake place; To this end those portions of the face plate 11 between theguide members 12 are provided. with rearwardly extending flanges 13,which are coextensive with the right angled portions 12 of the guidemembers and with which they cooperate when the coupler'is coupled. Thisconstruction insures a broad interlocking bearing contact between thetwo cou ling heads, said bearing surfaces being para gel to the axis ofthe system. I am aware that it has heretofore been proposed to provideguide members on coupling heads which are right angled for a shortdistance with respect to the face plates, but such construction hasheretofore been employed only for the purpose of preventing lateraldisplacement of one head with aware I am the first to construct acoupling head with a flange or set of flanges extending rearwardly fromthe face plates for the purposes above set forth.

Additional interlocking means of any suitable character may be employedin connection with the means above described. To this end I provide eachcoupling head with one or more lugs which cooperate with correspondingsockets in the other head. Said lugs and sockets may be of any suitableform and may be located at any desired place or places. As shown howevera lug 14 is formed integral with one of the guide members 12 near itslower edge and on its inner face, said lug being located adjacent to thestraight portion 12 of said member, but is slightly shorter than saidstraight portion in order to insure that the approachin coupling headsmay be properly alined y the guide members before the lug is caused toenter the socket 15 adapted to receive it.

The outer end 14 rounded to prevent striking the walls of the socket.The lugs and complemental sockets'are arranged 1ongitudinally of orparallel to the longitudinal axis of the coupler. Each lug is ofsubstantially uniform thickness throughout its length, but as appears inside view is tapered outwardly from its base toward said rounded end.Again, each of the lugs is provided with oppositely arranged shoulders14 which interlock with the dovetailed or under-cut walls of thecomplemental socket into which it is received in the other head, thesocket being of the same form as the lug. Each guide member 12 isprovided with another lug 16 adapted to cooperate with a socket 17 ofthe opposing head. The lugs 16 are, tapered and of the same generalcharacteristics as the above described lugs 14, but

may be smaller in size.

of said lug is slightly der to prevent the steam from any possibility ofits.

other suitable compressible material each of which is introduced fromthe outside of the face plate 11. The gasket employed in connection withthe steam heat connection, however, must be of peculiar construction inordamaging the same by immediate contact. To this end there is employeda thimble 21 having threaded connection at .21 with the face.

I plate, the same being operated by the application of a spanner to theinwardly projecting lugs 21% The gasket proper 22 surrounds the thimbleand is connected thereto by a rib 21 extending outwardly from the outer.face of the thimble and into a groove 22 in the gasket. When the thimbleis separated from the face platethe gasket 22 may be applied thereto,being sufiiciently flexible for the purpose of passing over the rib andwhen the thimble-is screwed into place the gasket willbe carried therebyfitting into a socket or rabbet 23. The outer edge of the gasket shouldproject sufliciently far beyond the face of the face plate to make aproper steam connection, but the outer edge of the thimble may besubstantially flush with that portion of the face plate which surroundsthe said socket or rabbet 23. In order to insure the coupling heads fromrocking laterally one upon the other it is important that there shouldbe provided a shallow flange or rim 24 extending substantially aroundthe edge of each face plate, and said rim 24 may also be extended.around the steam heat seat. It will be seen by this construction of the-steam heat connection that when the two coupling heads are connectedthe gaskets 22 will be compressed substantially within the space betweenthe thimbles and the face plates, andthereby they will be protected bythe thimbles from steam contact.

As indicated in Figs. 1 and 5 the means for supporting the couplingheads consists of a bracket 25 adapted to be rigidly and permanentlyconnected to the lower side'of the draw bar 26 by means of bolts orscrews 27. The bracket is provided along its lower portion with upwardlyextending hook shaped flanges 25 which are adapted to 'cooperate withthe upper ends of a pair of jaws constituting a rigid support orabutment 28. The two members of the support are adapted to be gripped tothe bracket 25 by means of a pair of bolts 29- under ordinary operativeconditions. Said support car ries the head 10 at its lower end, saidhead being mounted therein for universal movement by means of a ball andsocket connection 30. Said head is maintained normally in a horizontalposition by means of a spring 31 positively connected at oneend to thesupport and at the other end to the rear faced the head face plate.

In devices of this character it is essential for practical purposes thatthere be means provided whereby the trainman may readjust one or theother of the coupling heads intermediate the ends of atrain withoutdisturbing the engineer or uncoupling the cars.

The occasion for such adjustment may arise from leakage due toinsufiicient compression or tension of the spring 31 or it may arisefrom the fact that one or more of the packing gaskets may be defectiveby reason of long usage or otherwise. It is important therefore that thetrainman upon discovering a leak may tighten the coupling or ifnecessary to disconnect the same in order to gain access to the packingrings to replace or renew the same. I have therefore devised a means formoving the support 28 longitudinally ofthe bracket 25, such means beingillustrated as including a rack 25 provided along the lower edge of thebracket 25, and cooperating with said rack is a pinion 32 journaledtransversely in said support 28. The pinion 32 is provided on one sidewith a short trunnion 33 journaled in one of the jaws of the support andon the other side with a trunnion 3% extending through the other jaw ofthe support, the extreme end of the latter trunnion beingformedpolygonal at 34. for the application of a cranked wrench orotherimplement whereby the pinion may be operated powerfully. The end 34 ofsaid trunnion may conveniently be formed of the same size andconfiguration as the nuts of the bolts 29 so that the same wrench may beapplied to either successively. A pawl 35 is carried by one of thejawsof the support 28 and is seated therein in a "socket 35' for a limitedamount of pivotal movement, the hub of the pawl preferably being incontact with the circular wall of said socket. The point of the pawlcooperates with a ratchet 36 formed upon or adjacent to the trunnion 31.If it is found necessary to adjust the coupling head or tighten theconnection the trainman will apply his wrench to loosen the bolts 29 andthen apply his wrench to the trunnion and turn the same in the directionof the arrowa, Fig. 5, causing the support 28 to be moved as far asnecessary toward the left and thereby increasing the tension of thespring 31. If, however, it is found necessary to operator will apply hiswrench to the trunnion 3 1 and after lifting the pawl 35 out ofengagement with the ratchet wheel he will move the support and headbodily rearwardly along the bracket suliiciently far to gain access tothe face plate. This operation may be carried out in various ways, butas shown herein 1 provide an extension 37 repack the joints theand pivotthe same to the main portion of the bracket by means of a bolt or pin 38passed downwardly through a lug 38 and a pair of ears 4:0 and 4:0, saidears being integral with the extension 37 and the latter of which may bescrew threaded to receive the. threaded lower end of said pin 38. Thelower portion of the extension 37 should conform to the similar portionof the main portion of the bracket 25 so that the support 28 may passfrom one to the other. Upon movement of the support 28 from the rigidportion of the bracket 25 rearwardly upon the extension 37 the supportand head carried thereby may be swung around upon the pivot pin 38 as acenter so as to bring the face plate 11 into easy position foroperation, or in other words in a position in which the longitudinalaxis of the support and head carried thereby is substantially transverseto the axis of the car. It will be understood that the length of theextension 37 and its relation to the rigid portion of the bracket willbe'such that the guide members 12 of the heads will permit such pivotalmovement. After repairing or repacking the gaskets the extension 37 willbe restored to its normal position in alinement with the rigid portionof the bracket 25 and the support 28 will be moved along the same,either by hand or the wrench until resistance is encountered by thesprings.

Upon the application of force through the at any desired degree oftension, the pawl maintaining such tension temporarily until the bolts29 are again tightened. It is to be noted also that the position andform of the support 28 with respect to the head are such as to cause thecompression on the head to tend to tilt the support upon the bracketthereby increasing the connection between the support and the bracket bya gripping effect.

Having thus fully described the invention what I claim as new is:

1. In an automatic coupler for railway train pipes, the combination of apair of heads, each of said heads comprising guide members forcooperation with the guide members of the other head, said guide membersbeing provided with lugs, and each head being further provided betweenits guide members with sockets to receive the lugs of the other head,substantially as set forth.

2. In an automatic coupler for railway train pipes, the combination of apair of heads, each of said heads comprising guide members forcooperation with the guide members of the other head, lugs connected tosaid guide members on their inner faces, andeach head being providedalong it edges between the guide members with sockets to receive thesaid of the a other head.

4. In an automatic coupler for railway train plpes, the combination of apair of heads, eachhead comprising a face plate, a

plurality of guide members extending for-- wardly from the face plate ata right angle thereto and thence curving outwardly, and a plurality offlanges extending rearwardly from the portions of the face plate betweenthe guide members for cooperation with the right angled portions of theguide members of the other head, substantially as set forth.

5. In an automatic coupler for railway train pipes, the combination of apair of heads, each head comprising a face plate, a

plurality of guide members extending forwardly from the face plate at aright angle thereto and thence curving outwardly, a plurality offianges'extending rearwardly from the portions of the face plate betweenthe guide members for cooperation with the right angled portions of theguide members of the other head, and each of said heads being furtherprovided with tapered lugs and sockets arranged parallel to the axis ofthe coupler to receive and interlock with complemental parts of theother head, substanway tially as set forth.

,6. Inan automatic pipe coupler for railcars, the combination of acoupling head, a bracket, a support for the head-connected to saidbracket, means for sliding the supportlo'ngitudinally on the bracket,and means for causing the support to grip the bracket' 7. In anautomatic pipe coupler for railway cars, the combination of a fixedbracket, an extension member pivoted to said lfixed bracket so as toaline therewith, a support mounted upon said fixed bracket and movabletherefrom upon said pivoted extension, a coupling head carried by thesupport, and

means to positively adjust the support andhead along the fixed bracketand extension,

8. In an automatic coupler of the character set forth, the combinationof a fixed bracket, an extension connected thereto on. a: vertical pivotso as to aline with the fixed bracket or to assume a position at anangle thereto, a support carried by the fixed bracket and movabletherefrom upon the pivoted extension when the latter is in alinementwith the fixed bracket, a coupling head carried bythe support, and powermeans for for railway adjusting the support and head along the fixedbracket and its extension.

9. In an automatic train pipe coupler for railway cars, the combinationof a coupler head, a support therefor, adapted to be adjustedtransversely to the longitudinal axis of the car and means for movingthe head longitudinally of the support. 10. In an automatic train pipecoupler cars, the combination of a coupler head, a support therefor,means for adjusting the coupler head relative to said support andmeans'for shifting said support and coupler head transversely to thelongitudinal axis of the car. I

11. In an automatic train pipe coupler for railway cars, the combinationof a support, a coupler head adjustably mounted on said support, andmeans for shifting said support transversely to the longitudinal axis ofthe car.

12. In an automatic train pipe coupler for railway cars, the combinationof a support, a coupler head yieldingly carried onsaid support, andmeans for shifting said support transversely to the longitudinal axis ofthe car.

- 13. In an automatic train pipe coupler for railway cars, thecombination of a coupler head, a support therefor, resilient meanscooperating with said support and head for yieldingly maintaining thelatter in position, means for adjusting the head longitudinally of thesupport and means for shifting saidsupport transversely to thelongitudinal axis of the car.

14. In an automatic train pipe coupler for railway cars, the combinationof a head,

a spring for extending the head, an abut ment forthe spring, and meansfor shifting the longitudinal axis of the abutment. to a positionapproximately transverse to the longitudinal axis of the car.

15. In an automatic pipe coupler, the combination of a fixed brackethaving longitudinal ribs, an extension pivoted to said fixed bracket andhaving ribs adapted to aline with the aforesaid ribs, a supportcomprising clamp members embracing said ribs of the fixed bracket andslidable therefrom upon the ribs of the extension, a coupling headcarried by said support, means to positively move the support and headlongi- Y tudinally of the fixed bracket and extension,

andrmeans to clamp said support to the fixed bracket.

16. In an automatic pipe coupler, the combination of a fixed bracket, anextension pivoted to thefixed bracket, 'said bracket and extension beingprovided with rack teeth, a clamping support movable along the bracketand extension, a coupling head carried by the support, and a powerpinion journaled in the support in cooperation with said rack teeth forpositively moving the support and head extension.

17. In an automatic pipe coupler, the comalong said bracket and binationof a fixed bracket, an extension pivoted to the fixed bracket, saidbracket and extension being provided with rack teeth, a clamping supportmovable along the bracket and extension, a coupling head carried by thesupport, a power pinion journaled in the support in cooperation withsaid rack teeth for positively moving the support and head along saidbracket and extension, means to control the reverse rotation of thepinion, and means to clamp the 15 support to the fixed bracket.

JOSEPH VINCENT ROBINSON.

Witnesses:

GEO. L. BEELER, ARTHUR L. BRYANT.

